Friday, December 5, 2008
Thursday, December 4, 2008
Larry was hit by a car this morning
As we waited in the parking lot, a vehicle drove up to Jim and said a bicyclist had been hit by a car on Fury. Since Larry is always on time, and he wasn't there yet, it was a good chance he was the victim.
We quickly took off on our bikes and pedaled up the steep hill to the accident scene. The paramedics were carefully getting Larry on a backboard in preparation for a short ride in an ambulance to the waiting LifeFlight helicopter, which had landed in a nearby park.
The woman who hit him with her BMW was distraught, and when I heard how the accident happened, I can understand how she missed seeing Larry riding down the Bike Lane. However, she should have fully checked for all oncoming traffic before initiating left turn.
After Pete took Larry's bike back to his house, only four of us continued on the ride, Jim, Steve, Frank, and me. No one said a word as we rode down Willow Glen and Dehesa Road. Once Frank took the lead, the guys pulled away from me, so I turned around at the bottom of Harbison Canyon and headed back. It took almost the entire ride before my brain could think about anything else but Larry and his condition.
Here are the tracks for my shortened ride:
And here are the results of the heart rate monitor for both Thursday and Friday's rides:
When I got home, I called Larry at Sharp Memorial. He has cracked ribs, a broken shoulder, and six stitches in his head. It will be a long time before he'll be able to ride again, and that makes me sad.
We quickly took off on our bikes and pedaled up the steep hill to the accident scene. The paramedics were carefully getting Larry on a backboard in preparation for a short ride in an ambulance to the waiting LifeFlight helicopter, which had landed in a nearby park.
The woman who hit him with her BMW was distraught, and when I heard how the accident happened, I can understand how she missed seeing Larry riding down the Bike Lane. However, she should have fully checked for all oncoming traffic before initiating left turn.
After Pete took Larry's bike back to his house, only four of us continued on the ride, Jim, Steve, Frank, and me. No one said a word as we rode down Willow Glen and Dehesa Road. Once Frank took the lead, the guys pulled away from me, so I turned around at the bottom of Harbison Canyon and headed back. It took almost the entire ride before my brain could think about anything else but Larry and his condition.
Here are the tracks for my shortened ride:
And here are the results of the heart rate monitor for both Thursday and Friday's rides:
When I got home, I called Larry at Sharp Memorial. He has cracked ribs, a broken shoulder, and six stitches in his head. It will be a long time before he'll be able to ride again, and that makes me sad.
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
A ride from fog up into bright sunshine
It was overcast and very cool when we started out from the Starbuck's parking lot at 8:00, but with just a bit of elevation gain, we were in the sunshine and clear skies accented with a few very high clouds. Jim, Frank, and Steve set a very fast pace going out Willow Glen Road and I could have used my new fleece earmuffs I bought a couple of weeks ago.
The profile of my ride looks familiar because I stopped at the Starbuck's where both "Sit-down" Steve and Tom were stopping. The faster, stronger men continued out East Willows Road.
This is what the heart-rate monitor recorded for today's ride:
Coming back I didn't have to work very hard because I was drafting behind Jim. There was one heck of a headwind and I was never tempted to take the lead after my "first place finish" going down Harbison Canyon.
I felt better today, back to the way I felt two months ago when I first started riding with this wonderful group of people. I hope they know how much I appreciate their company. Their friendships mean a lot to me. It has been wonderful to expand my social contacts since I met them in September.
The profile of my ride looks familiar because I stopped at the Starbuck's where both "Sit-down" Steve and Tom were stopping. The faster, stronger men continued out East Willows Road.
This is what the heart-rate monitor recorded for today's ride:
Coming back I didn't have to work very hard because I was drafting behind Jim. There was one heck of a headwind and I was never tempted to take the lead after my "first place finish" going down Harbison Canyon.
I felt better today, back to the way I felt two months ago when I first started riding with this wonderful group of people. I hope they know how much I appreciate their company. Their friendships mean a lot to me. It has been wonderful to expand my social contacts since I met them in September.
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